Pipe-wrench.



L. WHITCOMB.

PIPE WRENCH.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 28, l9l5.

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I LEE WHITCOMB, or nnwoon, ILLINOIS.

' PIPE-WRENCH.

Specification of Letters Patent I Patented Oct; 1 2, 1915.

Application filed April 28, 1915. Serial No. 24,455.

T 0 all whom "it may concern Be it known that L'Lnn VVHrrooMB, a 011314 zen of the United States. residing at Elwood,

in the county of W ill, State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Pipe-l Vrenches; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates tocertain novel and useful improvements in pipe wrenches.

In the present instance it is my purpose to provide a pipe wrench in which the. grlp- T ping jaw may be instantly adjusted'to receive and grip a pipe to be operated upon, the connection between the jaw at the end of the handle and the sliding jaw being such that when the wrench is applied to the pipe to turn the latter, such connection will have a holding action upon the sliding jaw in such manner as to prevent it moving away from the pipe and thereby causing the d1sen gagement of the wrench.

Still a further object of my invention is the provision of a pipe wrench which will embody the desired features of simplicity, eiiiciency and convenience, which may be instantly adjusted to accommodate any size of pipe capable of being received within its scope, and which being possessed as it is of but relatively few parts, may be manufactured and marketed at a comparatively low cost.

l Vith the above recited objects and others of a similar nature in View, my invention consists in the construction, combination and arrangement of parts set forth in and falling within the scope of the appended claim.

In the accompanying drawings: Figure 1 is a view in side elevation of a wrench embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is a cross sectional View taken on the line 22 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the yoke plate and showing the lugs formed integral therewith. Fig. i is a top plan view of a wrench with the jaws spaced apart the extreme limit of their movement. p

Referring now to the accompanying drawings in detail, the numeral 1 indicates the stock or handle of the Wrench which'may be of any approved form, and has formed integral with one end thereof the enlarged gripping jaw 2, the gripping face of which is serrated or toothed as at 3. The head of the sliding jaw of the wrench is shown at a and the gripping face 5 thereof is also serrated or toothed with the teeth of this face extending in the opposite direction to; the teeth 3 of the handle jaw or the stationary jaw. The shank 6 of the sliding jaw is longitudinally grooved at each side as at 7, and

the top wall of each groove is provided with a longitudinal row of teeth 7. A central longitudinal web 8 is formed by the grooves 7, the outer end 9 of which web projects beyond the adjacent end of the shank and has a transverse stop pin 10 passed therethrough for limitingthe outward movement of the slid ing jaw relatively to the stationary jaw by contacting with the yoke 11. This yoke is formed of a U-shaped piece of metal, the inner faces of the parallel sides 12 of the yoke having the vertically disposed rhom' boidal lugs 13 formed integral'with and projecting inwardly therefrom, eachlughaving one end projected upward to form a tooth 13, the teeth. being adapted to engage with j the toothed rack sections 7 of the shank 6.

These lugs 13 are adapted to project into the longitudinal grooves 7 in the sides of the sliding jaw. The yoke is pivotally connected at its lower forward portion to the stationary jaw, as shown at 14,.while the numeral 15 indicates a fiat leaf spring which is fastened'by a rivet 16 to the top of the handle or stock 1 rearward of the stationary assembled relative to the other parts of the 1 wrench, the rhomboidal lugs 13 fit in the grooves in the sides of the shank of the slidin g .j aw so that the jaw may slide freely over thelugs when properly alined therewith,

thus enabling the wrench to be opened to its extreme limit by tilting the sliding jaw so that'the teeth 13 of the lugs will be dis-' engaged from the teeth. 7. When the wrench has been applied to the pipe and the sliding jaw is pushed inward toward the stationary jaw to properly grip the pipe, the operator may now turn the latter by pressing downward on the handle or stock 1. This will cause the jaw 3 to be tilted upward to bind against the pipe, the tilting taking place on the pivot 14-, while the sliding jaw will be held against movement away from the pipe by the teeth 13 of the lugs 13 engaging the teeth 7 on the walls of the grooves in the shank of this sliding jaw, the spring 15 assisting in holding the yoke and consequently the shank of the sliding jaw in proper position. When it is desired to release the grip on the pipe, the handle is swung forward or in the opposite direction and the jaws may be entirely released by pressing against the rear end of the shank of the sliding \Vhat I claim is:

In a pipe wrench, the combination with a handle having a stationary aw at one end thereof, of a sliding jaw provided with a shank portion having grooves in opposite sides thereof, the top walls of said grooves being provided with teeth, an inverted U- shaped yoke member pivotally connected at its lower forward portion with the stationary jaw, vertically arranged rhomboidal lugs integral with and extending inward from the' sides of the yoke member and adapted to lie in the grooves of the shank of the sliding jaw, said lugs having teeth adapted to engage with the teeth of the walls of the grooves, a member extending transversely of the yoke below the lugs, and a spring fastened at one end to the handle and adapted to bear at its opposite end against the transverse member.

In testimony whereof, I aflix my signature, in the presence of two witnesses.

LEE WHITCOMB.

Witnesses HAMILTON T. KING,

JAY C. JENKs, Jr.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C'. 

